The invention is generally directed to an article of clothing intended to be worn on the head of a person in cold and windy weather and, in particular, to cover the neck, face and possibly the top of the wearer's head. In the past, there have been various cold and inclement weather devices such as masks developed to protect the wearer's face. Many of these have been in the form of a mask or a mask and a scarf designed to cover the lower portion of the wearer's face below the eyes, including the nose, mouth, cheeks, chin and neck of the wearer. A scarf, added to the mask, has also protected the wearer's neck and is generally devised to slide within the collar of the wearer's coat so that cold air does not enter between the coat and the mask. In addition, for very cold and windy conditions, it is often desired to cover the wearer's entire head to provide additional insulative properties while leaving the wearer's eyes free, generally so that a pair of ski or snowboarding goggles can be worn covering eyes and allowing good visibility while preventing the cold air from contacting the eyes.
However, there is a need for variability of protection of the wearer's head, depending upon the conditions at the time and the type of other headgear that the user may be wearing. In some situations the weather is particularly cold and uncomfortable such that a full head covering, requiring a balaclava is necessary. In other cases the temperature and wind chill factors are not so unpleasant as to require coverage of the entire head, but still cold enough to make coverage of the nose and mouth important, particularly where direct contact with the cold air creates breathing problems. In addition, as more skiers and snowboarders wear crash helmets to protect their heads as they ski or snowboard, there is also a need on occasion for some protective insulative and a vibration reducing layer between the helmet and the wearer's head. Again, in other situations where a skier or snowboarder is wearing a traditional wool or baseball cap on his or her head, the balaclava head covering could interfere with the comfortable fitting of the hats. Thus, there is a need for a head covering which can cover the user's lower face and neck and, when desired, also cover the wearer's upper and back head regions without the need for multiple articles of clothing. Accordingly, there is a need for a convertible head covering which can easily and conveniently shift from a full head covering to a mask and scarf arrangement, without additional parts required or to be removed.